The owners of global energy storage giant VTTI are considering selling a stake in the business, but the deal’s fate hinges on the impact of the US-Iran war on oil markets.

IFM Investors, energy trader Vitol and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) have appointed Macquarie Capital to prepare the sale, according to three sources familiar with the situation.

ADNOC is considering exiting its 10% investment in the business, while IFM and Vitol are looking to sell 20% out of their 45% stakes each, bringing the total stake on offer to 50%, two of the sources added.

Rotterdam-headquartered VTTI is one of the world’s largest independent operators of energy storage terminals, with more than 10.3m cubic metres of storage capacity across 20 facilities handling oil products, chemicals, LPG, biogas and LNG.

Discussions for a possible sale are at an early preparation stage and began before the beginning of the Iran war on 28 February, according to the sources, initially with a view to launch a process in the second half of the year.

The timing however has been thrown into doubt by the outbreak of the conflict, which led to a nearly 50% surge in oil prices to around USD 100 a barrel within days, and raised questions over how demand for storage will evolve in the next months.

With oil prices spiking, some traders might be incentivised to sell fast rather than store oil, which can affect the short-term profitability of businesses like VTTI, one infrastructure lawyer noted.

However, the volatility caused by the war might increase demand from other customers for strategic reasons or to profit if energy prices rise further, an oil and gas advisor said.

Iranian retaliatory strikes on Gulf countries are also creating physical risks to infrastructure. The oil storage hub of Fujairah in the UAE was hit by a fire caused by falling debris from an intercepted drone at the beginning of the war. VTTI owns a 1.9 million cubic metre oil storage terminal in the city and closed it temporarily following the incident, according to reports.

These factors are likely to create uncertainty around VTTI’s valuation, with one of the sources estimating a possible enterprise value of around USD 3bn or more, but cautioning that this could vary significantly.

Recent sales of large storage terminal businesses have fetched EBITDA multiples in the region of low to mid-teens.

In the latest major global deal, Japan’s Mitsui O.S.K. Lines acquired LBC Tank Terminals last year for a multiple of around 13x the USD 200m EBITDA expected to be generated by the company in 2026, following ongoing upgrades.

Plans to sell a 50% stake in VTTI follow a USD 1.7bn refinancing of the business completed in 2024, including a USD 850m private placement.

The refinancing came on the back of plans by VTTI to triple the size of its business by 2028 as it taps growing demand for commodity storage including for energy transition-related sectors such as biofuels and sustainable aviation fuels.

It also follows a major expansion into LNG storage, which typically offers more stable cash flows than oil.

This includes the acquisition in 2024 of a 50% stake in one of the UK’s three LNG import terminals, Dragon LNG, from Ancala, and the takeover of a majority stake in Italy’s largest terminal, Adriatic LNG. In addition, the firm is developing a greenfield LNG import terminal in the Netherlands.

Australia-based IFM Investors first invested in VTTI in 2017, paying USD 575m for a 25% stake. In 2019, it took joint control of the business alongside Vitol after the pair acquired Buckeye Partners’ holding. Later that year, ADNOC bought a 10% stake in VTTI, with IFM and Vitol each selling 5%.

Amid strong M&A activity in the sector in recent years, Brookfield Infrastructure’s Inter Pipeline is also preparing a sale of its Nordic liquid storage business Inter Terminals, in a process again led by Macquarie Capital.

Macquarie declined to comment. IFM, Vitol and ADNOC did not respond to requests for comment.